Extracting subterranean fuel sources may require drilling a hole from the surface to the subterranean geological formation housing the fuel. Specialized drilling techniques and materials are utilized to form the bore hole and extract the fuels. Specialized materials utilized in drilling operations include materials for sealing the casing-casing annulus of the wellbore, which may be formulated for specific downhole conditions.
A wellbore is a hole that extends from the surface to a location below the surface to permit access to hydrocarbon-bearing subterranean formations. The wellbore contains at least a portion of a fluid conduit that links the interior of the wellbore to the surface. The fluid conduit connecting the interior of the wellbore to the surface may permit access between equipment on the surface and the interior of the wellbore. The fluid conduit may be defined by one or more tubular strings (for example, casings or tubings) inserted into the wellbore and secured in the wellbore.
During drilling of a wellbore, cementing the wellbore, or both, lost circulation zones may be encountered and may result in loss of drilling fluid or cementing compositions. In a lost circulation zone, the drilling fluid or cement composition flows out of the wellbore and into the surrounding subterranean formation. Lost circulation zones may result in increased cost of the well through increased material costs to replace lost fluids and downtime to remediate the lost circulation zone. Lost circulation zones may be remediated by introducing a lost circulation material into the lost circulation zone to seal off the lost circulation zone to prevent further fluid loss.
During well construction operations, conventional cement compositions and conventional placement methods used to isolate lost circulation zones often result in high fluid loss to the formation.